Less the 3 that haven’t worked so well lately
The last time I checked, and this was purely routine maintenance, I was still an average person. With average likes and dislikes. Average opinions (mostly) and an average amount of desire to be happy, be successful, be something slightly better than I was yesterday. The checklist was short but most boxes were ticked, so I thought this was all well and good.
Then I started thinking more about it. I know, I shouldn’t have, but I couldn’t help myself. I had the time, it was early in the day, so the dopamine levels were still running pretty high and … well, it just happened. I started thinking about Life and what it meant and what role I actually had in it.
At first, nothing materialized. I was staring at a picture on my study wall at the time, an old French poster of a man leaping out of a cup of coffee (don’t ask) and I waited. I thought the usual random images might start appearing in my mind, like in a dream, and I would slowly start to piece together the narrative. A story unfolding that explained why I was happy or sad, interested or having trouble staying awake. Feelings that I have most every day. But nothing was coming.
So, I went outside, took a few deep breaths and watched the leaves shimmering in the wind. Listened to the squirrel in our Elm tree, yelling at my cat and wondered again, what’s life all about?
That’s when it came to me. Pretty straightforward actually.
Don’t Get Caught up in the Questions
So, I rolled with it.
We all talk to ourselves. We do. While driving, while walking out alone, while conditioning our hair in the shower. We talk to ourselves, because as a general rule, we listen. We take the time and because of our close proximity to the person talking, we understand that something is bothering us and it’s time to pay attention.
I read somewhere once, or maybe I came up with this and forgot, that posing the right question, is more important and more revelatory than coming up with the right answer. Answers can be very simple and off-handed.
Yes.
No.
